William Ogwyn Williams
William Ogwyn Williams was a pilot in the Royal Air Force, after having initially enlisted with the army. He took part in the thousand bomber raids over Germany, and was shot down and killed in September 1942.
The information on William Ogwyn Williams has been compiled from a number of sources, including the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, from the South Wales Voice newspaper, and the Parish Burial Register (courtesy of the Swansea Archives).
| Name | William Ogwyn Williams |
| Date of Death | 16th September 1942 |
| Place of Death | PLACE |
| Age at Death | 23 |
| Unit and Regiment | Royal Air Force; 106 Sqdn. |
| Rank | Pilot Officer (Pilot) |
| Service Number | 46839 |
| Cemetery | REICHSWALD FOREST WAR CEMETERY - GERMANY; 12. F. 2. |
| Local Memorials | Ystradgynlais War Memorial |
| Notes | Son of Johnny and Sarah Williams. Husband of Elizabeth Williams of Lower Cwmtwrch, Swansea. Was shot down in operations. |
From the South Wales Voice newspaper, 15th February 1941 :-
HOME ON LEAVE
Cwmllynfell has been delighted during this week to give a warm welcome to quite a number of its sons now serving with the Forces. These include ……… Ogwyn Williams and Cliff Johnson.
There is news also of Sergeant Ogwyn Williams, who has been accepted under a new scheme, by the R.A.F., and he will shortly be leaving the Army to be trained as a pilot.
From the South Wales Voice newspaper, 20th June 1942 :-
CWMLLYNFELL PILOT
Fifty Feet over Cologne
Newspaper reports of the recent 1000 bomber raid upon the city of Cologne referred to the exploits of one brave pilot who went down to almost ground level in order to “shoot up” searchlights which had caught in their beams some others planes of the same Lancaster squadron.
Our Cwmllynfell correspondent learns that the daring pilot responsible for this deed was none other than Pilot Officer Ogwyn Williams, Cwmllynfell. His plane was riddled by A.A. fire, but he reached home safely. It is of interest to note that three members of this bomber’s intrepid crew are named Williams. We offer them all our best wishes for more “happy landings”.
From the South Wales Voice newspaper, 26th September 1942 :-
CWMLLYNFELL RAF PILOT MISSING
Notification was received on Thursday that Pilot Officer Ogwyn Williams, Cwmllynfell, had not returned from Wednesday night’s operations over Western Germany. The South Wales Voice joins with its readers in the fervent hope that news of his safety will soon be forthcoming, sympathising deeply with his young wife and parents in their anxiety during the period of waiting which must ensue.
Ogwyn is well known and very popular throughout the district, being famed for his powess on the football field and in many other branches of sport. He is a former student of the Ystalyfera County School, and joined the army in the conscription period some months prior to the outbreak of war. After serving for some time in the South Wales Borderers, attaining the rank of sergeant, he transferred to the RAF went through his pilots course in very rapid time and received a commission only three months after leaving the Army. For a time he flew Manchester bombers and was afterwards transferred to a Lancaster squadron. In terms of operational flying he is quite a veteran, last Wednesday’s trip being his 39th, and after only one more sortie he was due for a six months’ rest and possible promotion. It was only very recently that we recorded his daring exploit over Cologne, when he went down to 50 feet to shoot up searchlights, which were troubling our bombers. It will be recalled that he is a nephew of the late Sergeant Pilot Siriol Williams, who died of burns when his bomber was shot down over Wilhelmshafan in September 1939, one of the first raids of the war.